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Oakland International Airport will be home to two American Heart Association Hands-Only CPR training kiosks

Published: Jun 05, 2018

OAKLAND, Calif., June 4, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The American Heart Association - the world's leading voluntary health organization devoted to fighting cardiovascular disease - unveiled two Hands-Only CPR training kiosks today at Oakland International Airport during National CPR and AED Awareness Week, an annual observance that highlights how lives can be saved if more Americans know CPR and how to use an automated external defibrillator, or AED. Travelers can get trained in Hands-Only CPR in about five minutes while they wait for their flights.

Oakland International Airport serves more than 13 million travelers annually. Thanks to the Chevron Corporation, a kiosk will be located near Terminal 2, Gate 27. Thanks to the Anthem Blue Cross Foundation, a kiosk will reside near Terminal 1, Gate 8.

Each year, more than 350,000 cardiac arrests occur outside the hospital, and about 20 percent occur in public places such as airports. CPR, especially if performed immediately, can double or even triple a cardiac arrest victim's chance of survival. Yet less than half of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest victims receive CPR from a bystander.

"Every second counts when a person suffers a cardiac arrest, which is why bystander CPR must start immediately until professional help arrives," said Dan Smoot, American Heart Association, Bay Area Board Chairman. "But bystanders may be reluctant to perform CPR because of lack of training or they may be fearful. The kiosks will help the public acquire a comfort level with performing chest compressions without the stress of an actual medical emergency, so they'll feel empowered to spring into action if they witness a cardiac emergency."

Hands-Only CPR has two easy steps, performed in this order: when you see a teen or adult suddenly collapse, call 911. Then, push hard and fast in the center of the chest at a rate of 100 to 120 beats per minute until help arrives.

"Anthem Blue Cross Foundation is committed to supporting important initiatives that can have a positive impact on the health and wellbeing of the communities we serve," said Dr. Jacob Asher, Chief Medical Officer of Anthem Blue Cross. "Making the Hands-Only CPR training kiosks available at the airport enables travelers to make the most of an unanticipated layover by providing greater access to this valuable life-saving skill that can make a difference in the lives of Bay Area residents and beyond."

Each kiosk has a touch screen with a short video that provides an overview of Hands-Only CPR, followed by a practice session and a 30-second test. With the help of a practice manikin, or a rubber torso, the kiosk gives feedback about the depth and rate of compressions, as well as proper hand placement - factors that influence the effectiveness of CPR. Kiosk visitors can select to do the training in English or Spanish. The training also has closed captioning to make the instruction available to everyone.

"Bystander CPR increases one's chance of survival by doubling and even tripling positive outcomes," said Dr. Huma Abbasi, Chevron's General Manager of Global Health and Medical. "At Chevron we believe in empowering our Bay Area residents to not only learn an invaluable skill such as Hands-Only CPR but also support them in putting the knowledge into action and possibly save a life."

"We strive to create a positive and safe experience for the millions who travel through our terminal facility each year. We're excited to partner with the American Heart Association to host two kiosks which will serve as resources for travelers to learn how they can make a difference and help others who experience a cardiac emergency," said Bryant L. Francis, Director of Aviation, Port of Oakland.

There are an additional 26 kiosks across the United States with 11 kiosks located at several U.S. airports. More than 91,000 people have been trained across all the kiosks.

About the American Heart Association
The American Heart Association is devoted to saving people from heart disease and stroke - the two leading causes of death in the world. We team with millions of volunteers to fund innovative research, fight for stronger public health policies and provide lifesaving tools and information to prevent and treat these diseases. The Dallas-based association is the nation's oldest and largest voluntary organization dedicated to fighting heart disease and stroke. To learn more or to get involved, call 1-800-AHA-USA1, visit heart.org or call any of our offices around the country. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

About Anthem Blue Cross Foundation
Through charitable grant making, the Anthem Blue Cross Foundation LLC, an independent licensee of the Blue Cross Association promotes Anthem Blue Cross's inherent commitment to enhance the health and well-being of individuals and families in communities that the company serves. The Foundation focuses its funding on strategic initiatives that address and provide innovative solutions to health care challenges, as well as promoting the Healthy Generations Program, a multi-generational initiative that targets specific disease states and medical conditions. These include: prenatal care in the first trimester, low birth weight babies, cardiac morbidity rates, long term activities that decrease obesity and increase physical activity, diabetes prevalence in adult populations, adult pneumococcal and influenza vaccinations and smoking cessation. The Foundation also coordinates the company's year-round Associate Giving program and its parent foundation provides a 50 percent match of associates' pledges. ®ANTHEM is a registered trademark of Anthem Insurance Companies, Inc. The Blue Cross names and symbol are registered marks of the Blue Cross Association.

About Chevron Corporation
Chevron Corporation is one of the world's leading integrated energy companies. Through its subsidiaries that conduct business worldwide, the company is involved in virtually every facet of the energy industry. Chevron explores for, produces and transports crude oil and natural gas; refines, markets and distributes transportation fuels and lubricants; manufactures and sells petrochemicals and additives; generates power; and develops and deploys technologies that enhance business value in every aspect of the company's operations. Chevron is based in San Ramon, Calif. More information about Chevron is available at www.chevron.com.

About Oakland International Airport
Oakland International is the fourth busiest airport in California and second busiest in the San Francisco Bay Area. Serving over 13 million travelers annually, OAK is the closest airport to the region's top business and tourism venues. It is also the closest airport for most local residents.

Oakland's air service roster to over 60 nonstop destinations is offered on 14 different airline brands - seven of which operate with OAK as their sole gateway into the San Francisco Bay region.

The vision of Oakland International Airport is to offer customers a world-class experience and be the airport of choice for Bay Area residents and visitors alike. OAK is operated by The Port of Oakland, which also oversees the Oakland seaport and 20 miles of waterfront. Together with its business partners, the Port supports more than 73,000 jobs in the region and nearly 827,000 jobs across the United States.